Exhausted By Your Expectations
by BewilderedFemale
Summary: Jareth is the one to end things between him and Sarah when he realizes that he simply cannot meet her expectations of him, and that is where our story begins. Eventual happy ending :-)
1. Chapter 1

**Jareth is the one to finalize things between him and Sarah when he realizes that he simply cannot meet her expectations, and that is where our story begins. This chapter might seem grievous but I do promise an eventual happy ending, just hang in there :-)**

"**Exhausted By Your Expectations"**

* * *

They could not go on together.

Jareth watched as Sarah's tears streamed down her face. The art gallery where she worked had had another evening gala, they did them every year. For the second time in a row Sarah had had to explain why her boyfriend of over two years had not been present. Many of her co-workers and colleagues had already questioned if he was even real she knew; his absences at her work functions only confirmed their suspicions, some of them even 'joking' openly about what was talked about. This is what had happened on this particular night after Oliver had had far too many drinks.

He had sauntered over towards Sarah, drink in hand as he shoved her. "Hey..hey.. Sarah; where is this 'man' you talk so much of? Is he invisible? Make believe? Magic man?" He had said while trying to maintain his balance while laughing at his painful joke.

It wouldn't have been such a big deal if not for the fact that Oliver was her boss. Not only had it been unprofessional and disrespectful but if he had said it; that meant that everyone at the gallery had too.

Jareth hardly had time for recreation. Sarah had not been willing to move with him to the underground after she had finally decided ten years after saving Toby that she had always wanted Jareth as more than a friend.

"I'm just not ready to leave my world yet." She had stated, but Jareth loving Sarah as much as did, did not allow that to be an obstacle. He now had two jobs though in order to make things between them work. One as the Goblin King, and another as Jareth King; fashion designer from London. In this way he lived both above ground and also tended to his work in the underground.

He had still been on a flight back to New York while she had been at the Gala. Sure he could've magic'ed himself there, but Sarah had made him promise that while he was in the above-ground he had to live like a mortal which meant; no magic. There had been a delay due to weather conditions and because of his delay, she was now a devastated mess due to the occurrence at the gala.

"You're never there for me!" She had cried out angrily. "It's always work, and tending to your kingdom and.. " She cried.

Jareth sighed loudly as he closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. Every time they argued in this way it always tore him apart. More than anything he hated watching his Sarah in pain and it seemed that no matter what he did; she was always unhappy. She felt horrible, he felt horrible for making her feel horrible. It was a vicious circle that seemed to have no end.  
He had ignored it for far too long because he simply did not wish to part from her, but it wasn't about his wants anymore. For a while now he had already known that if Sarah was to ever be happy again, it meant that he could no longer be a part of her life apparently.

"I'm leaving." Jareth said as he picked up his briefcase. "And I'm not going to come back." He ground out painfully.

Sarah suddenly stopped crying and looked up at him in shock.

"Wha… what do you mean you're not coming back?" She asked nervously.

"Exactly what I just said." He bowed his head and remained silent for a long moment, Sarah then knew that he was absolutely serious.

"You are in pain constantly because of me Sarah and I have known for a while now that if you are ever to experience happiness, it cannot be with me." He walked up to her, his face one of deep sadness and defeat.  
"I cannot even remember when was the last time you've smiled at my arrival, always when I come to meet you you're angry, hurt, crying. Do you not think this affects me Sarah? Do you not think that I am not tormented by the fact that I live two very different lives now? Do you not think that I've waited long enough in hopes that you would finally decide to come live with me in the underground?"

Sarah shook her head. "We can work through this don't.." A tear ran down her cheek. "Don't end this, not like this." She whispered.

"Sarah; it's been over, and I believe the sooner we both accept it; the easier we'll be able to move on with our lives. I cannot keep trying to live up to your expectations of me Sarah; it's killing me emotionally and physically. I have not slept in four days Sarah, when I travel instead of anticipating a warm welcome, I brace myself for what I will be accused this time. I cannot continue in this way, you cannot continue in this way; the answer is obvious."

His felt his heart breaking, the pain in his chest, the numbness in his fingers; even his vision hazed as the finality of everything hit him. He sighed again before continuing. "I.. .. I will always love you Sarah. There will never be anyone else for me."

He blinked hard as he tried to ward off his tears. He gripped the handle of his briefcase so hard that his knuckles turned white, without looking to see her reaction, he turned away before disappearing from the room; a soft pop giving the only indication that he had just gone.

Sarah finally forced herself to look up at where he was standing before she gave in to bitter tears.


	2. Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

It had been a week since she and Jareth broke up.

Since then she had not had one decent night of sleep. She would either wake up from having nightmares or the pain in her chest would keep her up as her mind rapidly jumped from memory to memory of them together until she would break down into tears.

In her mind his words kept repeating as he looked at her with such sadness. "I cannot keep trying to live up to your expectations of me."

Was it possible that she had been too unreasonable with him? The truth was that ever since their arrangement they had hardly seen anything of each other. He was always busy trying to either tend to his kingdom or live the life of Jareth King.

Sarah got up having given up all hope of falling asleep for the night. It was 4:00am.  
She wrapped a comfortable shawl around herself as she sat on her couch and turned on the tv, the ache ever present in her body and especially in her chest, it traveled all the way to her throat. She reached for the remote control and instead, her hand fell upon a fashion magazine. She picked it up and looked at Jareth's face as the title read:

"Up and coming fashion designer Jareth King" on each arm he held a beautiful woman; they looked to be in their early twenties who were so skinny that a mild breeze would've probably sent them flying.  
She remembered that they had had one of their worst fights over that picture. One of the models in particular had been after Jareth during the shoot, and practically stalking him afterwards. It had shaken up Sarah and for the first time even made her question his loyalty towards her.

"Nothing happened Sarah; I love you! I'm doing this for you! This whole ridiculous Jareth King crap is for you! Because you do not want to live in my kingdom as my rightful Queen; I do this for you! Everything is for you!"

What Jareth didn't know however was that deep down inside; Sarah didn't think herself worthy to be Jareth's bride. She would look at others and think: "It's just a matter of time before he tires of me." Without even consciously realizing it; she had been pushing him away to spare herself the hurt and anguish that she would no doubt experience down the road when he dumped her for someone more beautiful. Having seen that picture ignited her insecurities to a degree that even she wasn't aware existed. It was fine that he told her he loved her, fine that he reaffirmed it with actions; but men were men, and it was just a matter of time, but now that she had finally managed to push him away for good; it didn't feel as free and relieving as she thought it would be.  
She was also very aware of the fact that she knew it would hurt like hell when he finally replaced her; she would hurt all over again, and she would hear about through Hoggle since they still kept in touch.

Having thought of him she stood up from her couch and walked over to her mirror. She sat there having decided to call on him even though she promised herself she wouldn't for at least two weeks, or until the pain of their break up subsided somewhat.

She took a deep breath before she peered into the mirror: "Hoggle? Hoggle are you there?"

I took him a long time to respond and for a while she thought that he wouldn't at all but then suddenly his grubby little face and giant eyes appeared. A genuine smile appeared on her face, it felt good to smile; it had been so very long since she had.

"Hoggle! How are you?" She asked excitedly.

"Who's me?" He asked as he pointed at himself. "I'm fine; it's you who I'm worried about."

Her smile fell instantly. "You know then."

"know? Know? Of course I know! You have that man crazy Sarah!"

She blinked. "What?"

He nodded vehemently. "He won't leaves his room! He hasn't been down to the throne room in a week! And Gretchen; one of the house keepers there tells me that he's nots eating either."

"Is he sick?" She asked with sudden concern.

"he wonts see nobody, even when his servant comes in and tries to enter his room; he magics them out."

This news made Sarah feel even worse, she clutched the front of her shirt and twisted it around anxiously… "Wha… what do you think I should do?"  
She suddenly felt as helpless as a frightened child, she honestly didn't think that he would react in that manner. If anything she thought he would dive into his work, or go off somewhere else, but stay locked up in his room? That was so unlike him and it unnerved her greatly.

"I don'ts know Sarah; it might makes things worse if you come here and see him likes this."

She thought about it and then nodded slowly. "Yeah; I guess you might be right. Just uh.. keep me posted on his progress alright?"

Hoggle nodded but continued to look at Sarah with pity. "I shouldnts ask this.." He started, and then looked up at her as if asking permission to continue.  
She stayed looking at him: "But…."

"But?" She said as if confirming he could continue with his question.

"Why dids ya break up with him? I thoughts for sure you would get married and be Jareth's queen; yours was like a fairy tale story. He loves you Sarah, is it that you don't love him?"

She groaned out loud, hung her head and allowed the restrained tears to finally flow freely. What started with a few tears quickly became a sea that blinded her of her vision. She couldn't even continue to talk to Hoggle as she sobbed loudly, her pain in her chest increasing as she thought about the fact that she and Jareth were over and done with.

"I love him like I have never loved anyone in existence Hoggle; and that is the truth, it's just.. It's so complicated and it's my fault. This whole ordeal is my fault Hoggle." She was finally able to say in between sobs.

"Sarah.. Sarah I aints no love expert, but I thinks you need to think about what you've done, and maybe reconsider trying to talk to Jareth later on. If you's loves each other, it's stupid to not be together."

Sarah shook her head though. "It's more complicated than that Hoggle. There's a lot of insecurity and it's mostly coming from my end. He deserves so much better than me Hoggle.

Hoggle looked at her completely stunned. "Sarah.. I don't thinks you understand just how much Jareth thinks the world of yous! I knowing you both can tell you that you're made for each other. Maybe since you's had him live aboveground he's changed."

"SEE!" She suddenly shot at him. "That is my fault too! I had him do things he didn't want to and now everything is a mess Hoggle. He deserves better.

Hoggle stayed silent and looked at her sadly.

"I thinks you need to do a lot of self searching Sarah. Now that I hears you talk; I'm starting to think that maybe a break isn't such a bad idea."

Sarah felt herself sobbing again. Even Hoggle felt that they needed to stay broken up now. She was just better off probably not talking to anyone from the Labyrinth for a while so she abruptly got up and disconnected contact with Hoggle not even bothering to bid him a good night.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

The next day, Sarah was at work, and barely able to function. She had bags under her eyes, they were red and blood-shot and her skin looked terrible.

Her boss came over to her office and took one look at her before saying: "Go home, right now."

"Whaa? What do you mean go home? Why?"

"Because you look like hell and I will not have you spreading whatever illness you have to my other employees; go home, come back when you get better."

She wanted to argue with the bastard but she just didn't have the energy. Even as she stood to make her way out, her head suddenly felt odd and her vision blurred, when was the last time she even bothered to eat anyway?"

She picked up half a soup and sandwich on her way back home, she set it down on her kitchen table and was taking off her jacket when she looked over to room and the glow of her mirror caught her eye. She blinked hard and without even thinking twice about it, she walked over to it.

She crept up carefully and practically fell backwards when Hoggle's face appeared and he began screaming: "Jareth is sick! Jareth wont wake up! You have to come and helps him!"

"WHAT?!" She screamed back in shock and sudden despair.

"Please Sarah; please come now and helps him! Healers can't figure out whats wrong!"

It was then that without even thinking twice, Sarah put on her brave face and quickly jumped up on top of her dresser.

"Move out of the way Hoggle; I'm coming through!"


	3. Chapter 3

Sarah landed harshly against Hoggle's floor, but she immediately got up and dusted herself off when she saw Hoggle running up to her.

"Sarah! It's so good to see ya's" He said as he hugged her legs. She knelt down in front of him and watched as his eyes grew wide.

"You actually came!" He said in a sad tone that made her heart ache.

"Of course I did; you said Jareth is unconscious."

Hoggle began to tremble then as he nodded.

"That's right; he's not responding to the healer's treatments. Is like he is in deep sleep. Theys still trying to figure it out."

Sarah didn't wait any longer, she quickly side-stepped Hoggle looking for the exit to his cave.

"Wait's Sarah! I knows a shortcut!" He called after her.

She stopped and watched as he pulled out the door from its usual area and placed it in the back of his cave. He then opened the door and a path towards the castle appeared.

"See? Instant shortcut!"

Sarah smiled. "Oh this is great Hoggle! Come on! We have to hurry!" She said as she began to jog, but then she looked down at her feet and realized she probably wouldn't get very far seeing as she was still wearing her work heels. She immediately took them off and threw them to the side so that now she was running barefoot to the goblin castle.  
She'd slow down every now and then for Hoggle, but the truth was that she was very anxious and seriously contemplating just sprinting without him in her desperation to see Jareth. All of this was her fault, and had she been more flexible and compromised when they had been together, he might've not even me in his current state of illness.

They finally made it to his room and instantly Sarah's eyes flooded with tears at the sight of him.  
That glamorous, and handsome king she had fallen in love with was no more. What lay in the massive bed was a pale and thin creature with lifeless hair that fell limp to the sides.

Her legs started to shake so bad that she fell to her knees as she placed her hands over her mouth. This was the effect of what she had done; for he looked as if he were already dead.

After finally regaining feeling on her legs; she carefully approached him. At first it was as if she were afraid to touch him but that only lasted so long. Soon, she was trying to wrap her arms around him to feel for his usual warmth but found that it wasn't there. The smell of magic and spices that usually encased his being was also notably absent. All that lay there before her was a fourth of the previous Jareth she had known.  
The knowledge that Jareth might actually not make it out of this alive suddenly became extremely real to her and hysterics suddenly took over as she sobbed un-consolingly against him. She tried to cradle him in her arms as she forced her way onto his bed. Desperately she tried to feel for any sign of life and all she found was a weak pulse, and labored breathing.

"He is dying."

Came a deep and terrifying voice from the door way.  
She looked up and found a very tall older man with a long beard dressed in burgundy robes.  
In his hand was a small blue bottle.

"I have been trying to keep him alive for as long as possible but I fear the worst."

As if protecting him, Sarah clutched him closer towards her and wrapped her arms protectively around him.

"What can I do? There must be something."

"I presume you are Sarah Williams then." The healer asked in turn.

She wiped away her tears with her sleeve, still trying to balance Jareth with her other hand.

"I am." _and I am the cause of his ill state_, she thought to herself.

"There might be something you can do, but you would have to leave immediately and hurry back as fast as you can."

The healer stepped in completely to the room, now looking at Jareth's lifeless form in Sarah's arms.

"He has a condition known to the Fae as: 'hasderumosis' and usually occurs when the person has undergone tremendous shock or suffering so great that the flow of magic within their bodies comes to a halt in such a way that it shocks their internal organs.  
I should tell you that most Fae die instantly when this occurs so the fact that he is still alive is a miracle in itself."

He continued to look only at Jareth as he spoke. Sarah was completely stunned at this news, already blaming herself a hundred times over for everything that had ever occurred between them.

"I believe that deep down inside he has some kind of hope, and that he is still holding on to the love that he has for you; I believe that is what is keeping him alive."

He then looked at her directly and spoke sternly.

"You have less than twelve hours to get to the outskirts of the goblin city. There is a town there known as Hyztera. This journey will not be easy especially when you come across the trolls. They are not like the goblins and they will try to kill you on sight, do I make myself clear?"

Sarah found herself nodding, unable to speak and she still held Jareth as if her life depended on it.

The healer waved his hands and suddenly a map began to float in front of her. The trail which she was supposed to travel was highlighted in glowing green colors.

"You are looking for the nistergia plant. It has a distinctive purple flower with a neon green center. It is the only flower that grows in that region so you wont have to worry about confusing it for something else.  
You specifically must be the one to acquire this plant in order for the healing remedy to work since you are the one the king loves."

"_The one the king loves_." She thought, "_and look at what I did to him_."

Sarah couldn't stay quiet at that and cried bitterly as she replied. "Some true love I turned out to be; he's dying because of me."

The healer now stepped up close to her and pulled Jareth away from her grasp.  
"Now is not the time to place blame, you must go; time is wasting."

Sarah nodded and immediately took the map before heading out. She was already running down the hallway when Hoggle suddenly yelled at her. She turned around exasperated.

"Sarah… Are you really going to leave without me, and without shoes?"

She looked down at her feet and then sighed loudly. "Right.. Where can I get shoes?"

Hoggle walked down a few steps and opened one of the doors in the hallways. He began picking through the rubble and starting tossing stuff behind him. A shovel, some metallic balls, a live chicken, and some broken wooden ale mugs when he finally fished out a pair of black flats.

"Here you go; hopefully they wills fits ya!" He said as he handed them to her.

They fit better than good; they had fit perfectly almost as if they had been made especially for her feet.

"I can helps you." Hoggle said as he ran beside her. "I know shortcuts of how to get to where the flowers are, but I'm warning ya's its not going to be easy to get past the trolls if its just us two alone; I think we will needs help!"

She stopped and thought about it. "Are they really as ruthless as the healer described them to be?"

Hoggle nodded. "He's right. They're not like goblins Sarah; they will kill you if they see you invading their territory, talking things out doesn't works with them. They also likes things of value so I would take off those earrings and that ring you're wearing too."

She instantly pocketed her earrings but she took a moment to look at the ring she was wearing. It had been a gift from Jareth during their six month anniversary as a couple. Things had not been so bad then, but she had still insisted that she didn't not want to her leave her home in the above ground when he had offered her once again to move down and take her place as his rightful Queen. She couldn't understand what always made her say no, but deep down she knew the culprit had been fear; always fear. It reared its ugly head out to her and mocked her. "So much for being so brave Sarah; look at what you've done to the love of your life!" It taunted.

She didn't have time however to continue to meditate on her past sorrows so she quickly took off the emerald ring and also placed that in her pocket before they took off again.

"So what do you suggest then Hoggle? Are you thinking?"

Hoggle nodded. "They're still our friends Sarah, and we are in need; I'm sure they'll help us."

In no time they were standing outside of a very large tree. Outside was a sign that read: "The Didymus family"  
It was odd to see that he was no longer living near the bog of eternal stench and she suddenly felt a wave of guilt for not having kept up with Didymus and Ludo more.

Hoggle hurriedly knocked on the door and effectively; Sir Didymus peered his head out.

"To what do I owe….. HOGGLE!" He cried as he leapt on to him and began barking happily. They spun around a few times until Hoggle fell over, Didymus still barking happily when he suddenly looked up and saw Sarah there.

"My lady…" He said as if he were in awe.

She cocked her head to the side and gave him a sad sort of smile. "Sir Didymus; it's so good to see you!"

She ran towards him and they met half way before she knelt down and embraced him tightly. Again; she had succumb to tears. It seems that her trip to the Labyrinth this time was filled with an overwhelming sensation of sadness and remembrance of past wrongful acts.

"My Lady.. you are crying." He whispered.

She nodded. "I need your help Sir Didymus… Jareth is.. he's…"

"Shhhh… I know my lady.. I know.. and I am not surprised to see thou here. Have you been to the castle yet?"

Between she and Hoggle, they explained to him what had happened, all the while Sir Didymus nodding in understanding.

"I will of course join you all on this quest; you will need a gallant knight for this sort of thing!" He said as he raised his head up high. "However; I also feel that we need the assistance of another."  
They all looked at each other before simultaneously replying: "Ludo"


	4. I see you in my dreams

**Thank you all for your reviews! I have to say that I'm really enjoying writing this story, and I'm so glad that you all have been receptive of it.  
****Still fighting an illness but at least now I'm well enough to write.**

**May the adventure to save Jareth begin!**

* * *

Ludo had been resting under a tree behind his house.

It seemed that now in days things had quieted down a great deal so all he seemed to do is sleep, which he of course did not mind, but even he recognized that something was lacking in his life. Either way he was not going to go in search of anything that would delve him into trouble; he had done that once before and ended up inelegantly hanging upside down due to a trap. Had it not been for Sarah who had come to his rescue, who knows how long he would've been left hanging.

Sarah; sometimes he could still hear the sound of her voice calling out to him. He lifted his head up and narrowed his eyes for he could swear that he heard it even now.

"Sawah?" He mumbled deeply to himself as he looked around. No, it must just be his imagination playing tricks on him, which happened lately. Like he had thought one time overhearing that his majesty King Jareth was dying and there was no way that was true; Jareth was a fae, and they were practically indestructible.

He heard her call again and this time got up completely.  
He was making his way around his house and was suddenly attacked by Sir Didymus.

"LUDO!" Yelled Sarah as she too ran to him with open arms.

Ludo's eyes went wide but he wrapped his long, fury arms around them and lifted them off the ground. He looked at Sarah and was astonished at how grown up she looked, she was definitely not a child anymore.

"Sawah Fwiend?" He asked as if to make sure it was really her.

"Yes Ludo." She replied as she wiped the tears out of her eyes. "I know I haven't been much of a friend lately but it is me. She looked around at all of them as she continued to wipe her eyes.

"I really do hope that all of you can forgive me for being such a lousy friend, the only one I've kept in touch with was Hoggle and.. I have no excuses to offer."

Ludo didn't understand why she was so upset, she was from another world so he expected that she wouldn't be popping up in the underground all of the time.

"Sawah back?" He inquired.

She spun around to face him, her face was clear of tears but her eyes were red and she had dark circles under her eyes, something was definitely not right.

"I am, but not under circumstances that I would want Ludo; It's Jareth."

His eyes went wide and suddenly the memory of having heard that he was dying came to the forefront of his mind; it was true then.

"He's dying Ludo, and we've come here because we're hoping that you can help us. We have to get to the outskirts of the goblin city where the trolls reside.

Ludo's eyes went wide as he shook his head. "Dangerous! Sawah die!"

"It's a risk I'm willing to take Ludo; it's my fault he's dying."

Ludo found this incredibly hard to believe. What he did believe however was that Sarah deeply loved Jareth, and he knew that she would put her life on the line if it meant saving him, there was no way she would be talked out of it nor was he about to try, Sarah was in need, she was his friend and that's all there was to it. When friends were in need you did whatever was necessary even if wasn't the best idea ever.

He nodded as he embraced them all yet again. "Ludo help! Ludo friend!"

"Oh Ludo." Sarah cried. "You really don't know how much this means to me."

They all hugged again, the sincerity of their desire to help overwhelming her to the point of tears yet again. It seemed that lately all Sarah did was cry and she wondered yet again how she had let it come to this. She really should have been Queen, the underground should have been her home by now and yet because of her selfish demands, she had turned away from it and decided her home would always be in the above ground. Only now that they were all together like this did she realize the grave error in her ways.

"Well? Are just gonna hugs all day?" Hoggle asked as he crossed his arms in front of him.

"We gots to save Jareth!"

Sarah got up and immediately began walking. "Lead the way you guys; we have to hurry!"

* * *

"How is kingy doing?" One of the little goblins asked the healer with a sad expression.

The healer cocked his head to the side as he looked at him. To his surprise ever since Sarah got back, Jareth's color had improved, and there little signs of movement.

The healer looked at him intently before answering the little goblin. "If miss Sarah gets back on time; I think our king will be alright."

Both of them looked over at Jareth, neither of them knowing that despite the fact that he seemed to be sound asleep; Jareth was actually watching Sarah and her friends in his dream state. They were all walking in the direction of the outskirts and they had hit a fork in the road. Both sides led to the outskirts of the kingdom but one side would take them twice as long and would be more dangerous than the other.  
He watched as his love rubbed her hair out of form. He observed her features and was saddened by how sickly she looked. After all was said and done she did love him, she was willing to put her life on the line for him.

Jareth stirred in his sleep and the little goblin's eyes widened as he gasped. "Kingy moving! Kingy dreaming!"

Sarah could not make up her mind on which way to go.

"I thought this was a dead end a minute ago! What are we supposed to do now?!" She yelled angrily.

"My fair maiden!" piped Sir Didymus. "I believe the best way is the one towards the right."

"Shows how much you know!" Chimed in Hoggle. "We have to go to the left."

Everyone except for Ludo was discussing which way to go until they all saw a beautiful transparent snow owl fly across the darkened sky.

"Look!" Sarah cried. "It's an owl!"

They watched in wonder as the owl perched itself on the branch of the tree. It looked at them and hooted several times before it flew through the right side of the path.

They all looked at each other and nodded before making their way in the direction that the owl had flown through.


	5. Chapter 5

The owl served as their guide. It always remained perched nearby as they made their long journey towards the outskirts. They had been walking for several hours when Hoggle complained that they needed to take a short break. Sarah didn't argue at this, her feet were aching and she knew she'd wake up sore the next day, and yet her determination to save Jareth increased all the more for she felt deep down inside that the whole reason why they were even doing this was because she had allowed Jareth to break up with her; this was all her fault, and she needed to right her wrongs even if he never spoke to her again after this.

Sarah leaned against one of the trees, closed her eyes and sighed loudly. A memory came to her mind, back when things were good between her and Jareth, before the fighting and inevitable break up.

They had been walking hand in hand, admiring the wonderful scenery around them, and he had leaned her against one of the trees and kissed her.  
The feel of his lips against her own was always an indescribable feeling although if she had to term it, it would be in a word; magical.

She burned for him, and his heated kisses always had the capacity to quickly have her yearn for more. Opening her mouth so she could allow his tongue to enter her. Only he was capable of bringing this out in her, even when things started to get bad, she would be arguing with him and sometimes he would just suddenly silence her with his kiss and everything else would just melt away.  
He would transfer all his love and passion through his kiss, and that was why it was so addicting, she never tired of kissing him, on the contrary; she always wanted more, and was always frustrated when he'd turn away after an argument and the kissing had suddenly stopped. As she thought these things she again asked; how did it come to this?  
Why didn't she try harder to work things out?

She knew however that she always felt that she was not good enough for him, and that was what tore her up inside for she figured that not being good enough in her mind equaled that he couldn't possibly love her even if he said he did.

She felt herself start try cry as would inevitably happen when she thought these things. Her vision started to blur and she quickly tried to wipe away her tears. She suddenly felt a flurry of activity and let out a startled gasp when she realized that what she had heard and felt had been the owl flapping it's wings and perching itself on the branch that was right in front of her.

She gazed at the owl with such sadness and was about to turn away but the owl began to hoot at her.  
She stopped and slowly turned around to look at the owl again.

"I know it's not you Jareth, and yet..."  
She slowly approached the owl, curiously noting how it looked her up and down and continued to hoot.

Sarah knelt down in front of the owl, and let out a small gasp when she realized it had mix-matched eyes. She swallowed hard and hung her head for a moment before mumbling: "I failed you; I always knew that I would. I am more sorry than you can ever know Jareth."

The owl let out a low hoot in response, and she looked up at it with tears streaming down her face.

"But I promise I will save you Jareth, this is my fault and I will do whatever it takes, even if it means my life."

She tentatively reached out and let her hand fall on the head of the snow owl in front of her, immediately she felt herself re-energize with a surge of love and warmth she had been so desperately needing.

Sarah continued to look at the snow owl tentatively but slowly began leaning forward until she placed a gentle kiss on it's head.

* * *

Back at the palace a couple of the goblins were circling around his majesty king Jareth.

"You think kingy ever gonna get better?" One of them groaned.

"Don't know, kingy never been sick before."

"look! look! Kingy moving again!" One of them exclaimed.  
They all huddled around him and howled with delight when Jareth mumbled a: "Sarah...love.. you.." in his sleep.

"Kingy dreaming about pretty lady!"

"Pretty lady gone to save kingy; I know it!"

* * *

"Uh.. Sarah.. whats are you doing?" Hoggle asked when he saw that Sarah had her hands all over the owl and was giving it gentle kisses. What was really weird however was that it looked like the owl was actually enjoying it!

Hoggle eyed the owl and then back at her again. "You don'ts really think that that owl is… Jareth is in the castle Sarah, he can'ts possibly be in his owl form. I knows you wants to see Jareth, but that owl is not him."

Sarah felt herself blushing badly as she suddenly jerked herself away from the owl, but the owl latched itself on to her again with its beak and feet, and climbed up to her shoulder before it pecked her lips gently with its beak.

Hoggle was so completely weirded out that had the situation not been as grave as it was, Sarah would've fallen on the floor laughing at the expression on his face.

"You're right Hoggle, but this owl is going to help us get what we need, it's guided us so far, and.."

She suddenly stopped as the owl was lightly pecking at her neck, oddly enough the way Jareth use to kiss her neck when they would be cuddling together.

She was blushing so badly that Ludo cocked his head to the side and let out a confused groan.

"Nevermind, we have to get a move on now."

She turned towards the Owl and looked into its mix-matched eyes before quietly asking it:  
"Can you please show us where we need to go now?"

The owl looked at her for a long moment, and then pecked her lightly again on the lips before taking flight in the direction they needed to go.

Sarah turned to her friends and waved towards the direction the owl was flying towards.

"Come on guys, we still have a long way to go."

And they did. The road up ahead was proving to be anything but friendly as the trail became thick with bushes and plants they had to constantly be dodging. Then the owl began to hoot loudly and Sarah stopped in mid-stride.

"It's warning us you guys, we need to be careful." Sarah said.

But Hoggle waved her off and continued to walk.

"We's are wasting time! We gots to..Ahhhh!" Hoggle cried as he suddenly stepped into an oozing brown muck that had been covered by bushes and dried leaves.

"I'm sinking!" Hoggle cried in horror as already half of his body had already disappeared in the brown substance.

"Hold on to my hand Hoggle!" Sarah cried as she clasped his, she then reached out to Ludo and he quickly pulled Hoggle out of the mess. Ludo had pulled a little too hard though since Hoggle landed roughly on the ground and hurt his leg.

He sat and cringed in pain as he tried to massage it away. "I thinks I hurt myself." He said as he tried to stand up.

"I believe he might have injured his ankle M'lady." Sir Didymus said as he looked at how Hoggle's ankle was already starting to swell.

The owl then flew and perched itself on Sarah's shoulder again, she smiled and patted its head before whispering to it: "Thank you for the warning."

This time it pecked the tip of her ear before taking flight again.  
Ludo held out his hand to Hoggle in offer to carry him the rest of the way but Hoggle shoed away his hand.  
"There aints nothing wrong with me!" He replied hotly, but once he tried to take a few steps he howled in pain.

"Hoggle, we don't have time for this!" Sarah complained. Let Ludo carry you.

He flashed an annoyed look at Sarah and then folded his arms in front of him. "Fine!"

Ludo picked up Hoggle and placed him over his shoulder as if he weighed nothing, and once again, they were on their way.

**Please read and review to let me know you're still tagging along, I know it's been a while since I've updated.**


	6. Time For Action

The path that they were headed towards suddenly became very dark. The only thing Sarah could really see clearly were the owls big mix-matched eyes as it guided them towards their destination.

Sarah pulled out her map and began to browse it before Hoggle hurrumphed.

"No points in checking the map, the owl has been guiding us better!"  
He pointed towards the owl perched up on a branch; it was looking directly at Sarah the whole time.

Sarah sighed as she put the map away. "Yeah, I know."  
She looked up at the owl and gave it a small smile, the owl in turn winked one of its large eyes at her.

"If Jareth wasn't unconscious in bed, I would swears something funny was going on!" Hoggle said as he had been watching the interplay between her and the owl.

"Jareth better watch out when we come back with his medicine; you'll be likely to leave him for that owl there."

Sarah rolled her eyes and looked up at Hoggle who was still being carried by Ludo and he had his arms crossed in front of him.  
"Hoggle, your jealousy is quite unbecoming."

"Wha... jealous? Me? Of a bird?! Bah hah! Never!"

"Really?" Sarah replied. "Oh well then, you won't mind if I just have the owl with me all the time then." and just as she finished saying this, the owl flew towards her. She extended her hand out and it landed on her hand. It was a good thing she was wearing long sleeves otherwise it would've hurt her with its sharp claws.  
The owl hooted at her and she gave it little kisses in turn. The owl lifted its head, is if giving her better access.

"Alright that's enough!" Barked Hoggle. "Are we goings to save your boyfriend or not?"

She smiled at the owl who had its eyes closed and was making a strange, almost purring sound before it opened its eyes and took off again heading towards Hoggle and just barely missing the top of his head as it screeched loudly.

"Ahh! It's attacking me!" He waved. Ludo made an annoyed sound as he tried to steady Hoggle.

"We must carry on with our mission!" Sir Didymus said as he led the way ahead of them. The darkness began to subside and all of the sudden there was a clearing. Acres upon acres of nothing but dead grass, and all the way at the very end they could just make out a purple and green glow of what they presumed to be the flowers needed for Jareth's medicine.

Sarah pulled out her map and her emerald eyes lit up with delight. "That's it! I think this is the entrance of Hyztera! We have to get down there and find the nistergia flowers!" She said as she took off in full run.

"Wait! M'Lady!" Sir Didymus called out to her, but she kept going, and then the owl flew towards her screeching loudly before landing on her shoulder and pecking her a lot harder than it ever had.

"What? Why don't you want me to get the flowers? How are you supposed to turn back to normal? We're running out of time!"

The owl gave her lips a soft peck before it flew out into the open field, and suddenly there was loud explosion that was so powerful that the ground they were standing on literally shook.  
Sarah quickly took hold of Sir Didymus before they both dodged on to the ground, Ludo also holding Hoggle as tightly as possible for fear of the worst.

After the explosion subsided, and everything seemed calm again, Sarah carefully let go of Sir Didymus. "Are you alright?" She asked him.

"I'm fine M'Lady, what in the world was that sound though?"

"It sounded like a cannon ball being fired." Sarah said for she still remembered that was the way goblins fought, and she was willing to bet it was the way of the trolls as well.

"Jareth!" She cried out when she suddenly realized that he had flown out into the field so that Sarah would know where the trolls were hiding out.  
She got up and quickly hid behind some of the bushes and carefully peered out into the field.

Her guess had been correct for out in the field stood at least six gargantuan trolls. Each one carrying clubs with spikes over their shoulders, and one in particular had a large horn shaped object on its side. It picked it up and blew loudly into it and more trolls came out.

"Oh my god!" Sarah cried out. "There are so many! How are we supposed to get across!"

What worried her even more though was that the owl was nowhere in sight.

"My lady..." Sir Didymus whispered. "Look!" He said as he pointed to the right hand side of the field where there was a couple of bushes. The owl was there but it was different, and it looked transparent.

"oh no, no, no, no, no." Sarah cried. "I have to go to him, I need to make sure he's ok!"

"Then I shall go as well!" Didymus replied.

"No, you can't remember? I have to do this alone, I have to be the one to get the nistergia's and save Jareth." She again was about to take off but Didymus called to her again.

"M'lady, wait! We should create a distraction first, the trolls will definitely see you if you just run out there."

Didymus began looking around furiously before finally finding a large rotten log. "Ludo, if you can put Hoggle down for a moment and then launch this log out into the field, the trolls will draw their attention to it and Sarah and cross over to the bushes and into safety."

Ludo did as instructed, setting Hoggle down, he let out a low howl of pain as he clutched his leg. He looked up at Sarah and sighed loudly. "you's really gonna go out there alone."

"I have to, you know I know I do."

Hoggle nodded. "Be careful."

Sarah smiled. "I will, I'll be back so fast you wont even know I was gone."

"Good luck fair Maiden." Didymus said as Ludo picked up the large log and with all his strength he threw it as far and further away from where Sarah needed to go as he could. Instantly the trolls began to fire cannons and run towards the log, and once Sarah saw her chance, she headed towards the direction of where the fading owl stood waiting for her.


	7. Nistergias come at a cost

Sarah had never run so fast in her entire life.

She herself surprised at the speed in which she ran towards the fading owl. She felt herself slide behind the thickets of bushes. She fell so hard and fast that she couldn't stop herself from actually sliding right into the bushes, the large thorns piercing her clothes and skin, but she didn't feel the pain. She looked up anxiously to see where the owl was, only to find that it was now laying on the floor, hooting softly as it was now completely transparent.

She anxiously got up on all fours, sitting on her heels and making sure she had not been seen by the trolls. They were still looking at the other direction; the plan had worked.

"Jareth" she whispered. "Just hang in there! We're so close Jareth!" She picked up the Owl and held it against her chest, watching helplessly for there was nothing she could do for the owl at this time. She needed to get the nistergia flowers and the longer she delayed, the more likely it was that Jareth would not see this through alive.

"Just stay here, get your strength back up to guide us back to the castle." She whispered as she left the owl laying on the ground.

Sarah braced herself for the long run. The trolls were still completely obviously to the other side of the field but it was likely that one of them at some point would turn around and spot her running, it was extremely risky but it was a risk she had to make, there was no way she was going to chicken out of this situation; Jareth's life was at stake. Even if she could get the flowers to the owl while she stayed behind; he could fly them back to the castle and Jareth would be saved. Her mind was now completely focused on his needs.

She made a mad dash towards the glow of the nistergia flowers up ahead of her, again running so fast that she didn't see a chunk of wood sticking out of the ground and she was unable to stop herself from falling hard on the ground.

She felt the thorns scraping her face, she licked her lips and tasted a coppery residue and wiped her fingers over her lips and beheld what she had known all along, it was blood, and a good amount of it.  
She carefully tried to find the source of the gash only to flinch in pain when she pressed her fingers against her lower lip. If she had been able to inflict so much damage upon her person just on her own, she didn't even want to think what was possible if she were caught by the trolls. The healer had definitely not been exaggerating when he said that she could be killed, easily.

She stayed low on the ground and slowly turned herself around so that she was facing the direction in which she came. The trolls were now nowhere in sight and this caused her stomach to turn uncomfortably for it could mean many things. They had either gone after her friends, or they had retreated back to their hiding spot. In any case it was better to have them in view for now she didn't know where she stood, but she couldn't pay mind to that right now, she had to keep moving.

She forced herself to get up and began running again. It felt as if she had been running for an eternity and while she could see the flowers getting closer and closer into view, it always felt like she would never get close enough. The sensation was similar to a dream where you're running except that no matter how much you run, you never get close enough to your destination.

As she ran, the memories of Jareth began to flow into her mind once more. This time they were cuddling together on her couch and he was caressing her with his regal fingers. He was always so beautiful, even down to something as common as his appendages.

He had made an offer to her again.

"Why don't we just leave already Sarah? We love each other and our place is in the underground. I tire of being two different people. I should only be one man Sarah, the king who tends to his wife, the Queen. I don't understand why you hesitate so, do you not love me?"

He had asked her as his mix-matched eyes searched deeply for any shred of hope that she would finally come to her senses and realize that her insecurities were unfounded and that she would at last accept the future both of them were entitled to lead.

Her fear had been unfounded for she was in fact a very brave woman in her youth and yet as she grew older and exposed herself to the above ground society, things seemed to change and the drawbacks of that were unfortunately felt by Jareth.

"I shouldn't have let it go this far." She cried bitterly as she ran, and the truth was that she really shouldn't have. The fact was that she had always wanted to be his bride, and he shouldn't have to die in order to prove it to her.

Those past memories served as fuel as she ran faster even though she was in pain and was growing tired both physically and emotionally.

Finally she felt the terrain change and she was moving uphill, lifting her legs higher to increase in speed, the nistergia now in close proximity. She dove and landed into a glowing patch of greens and purples, the colors highlighting her face and hair in such a way that she seemed almost alien.  
She didn't need to look at her map to know that she had arrived but she did nevertheless and once she was absolutely certain she had arrived at her destination; she began to pluck as the nistergias like a mad woman, taking as much as she could carry.

She noticed however that now that she had taken them out of the ground, the glow was still ever so powerful and she fell into the realization that she could be spotted a lot easier now, but she didn't allow herself to wander into possible scenarios. She took what she needed and began running back just as fast as she had been before.  
Every time she moved her hands as she ran, the glow brightened the path.

She braced herself for what was to come now that she neared the bushes where the owl had been only to find that it was no longer there.

"_What do I do now_?" She thought to herself.

She dove behind the bushes and desperately began calling out for the owl with no success. She looked around and things seemed quiet, too quiet.

She looked down at her dirty and scraped hands and had to squint her eyes since the glow of the flowers were that powerful, she could see how powerful medicine could be produced from them.

After several minutes of contemplating her situation, she looked over at the opening where she had last stood with her friends before she set off alone on her quest. There was no evidence proving that they were still there, and she couldn't make out any movement whatsoever, she began to fear the worst and decided she needed to run back in that direction.

She held tightly to her flowers and ran quickly towards that direction, the closer she got, the more the view cleared and finally she was able to make out several horses being ridden by men in silver armor, and her friends lying lifelessly on the ground.


	8. Chapter 8

Sarah no longer even cared if the trolls saw her, the effect of seeing her friends lying lifeless on the ground was so devastating that she ran towards them with an angry cry. She didn't know what she was doing and for all she knew, the trolls would kill her instantly and Jareth would eventually die too. Why did things have to be this way? Why did things have to be so complicated?  
She was coming up closer now as she ran, her tears blurring her vision but then as she frantically wiped her eyes, she realized that it wasn't the tears that were blurring her vision; the scenery around her was changing and she was suddenly falling, objects around her floating about, trees, shrubs, even the trolls. One of the roared at her but then disappeared into a cloud of green smoke.

Sarah landed abruptly, breathing hard and feeling very frightened about what was happening, especially since she really didn't even know what was happening, where was she? Were her friends alright?

"Ludo? Hoggle? Sir Didymus?" She asked frantically as she turned around, but she was in an empty room with smoke rising from the ground.  
She closed her eyes whispering things like "This is just a dream, I passed out, I'm lying unconscious" and then her eyes shot wide open as she realized the possibility that maybe she hadn't succeeded and she was really dead. That was it, she had failed and now she was dead. She swallowed hard and rummaged her hair with her fingers as she began to cry out loud.  
"I never got to tell him the truth; I never got to tell him I love him; I love him so much!" Sarah cried bitterly and fell to the ground again as she clutched her mid-section.

Sarah was startled however as she heard a soft rustle and looked up frantically. A woman approached her wearing lavender and white. She had white flowing hair and bright green eyes that didn't even appear human. Her clothes were so sheer that you could practically see through her as she floated towards Sarah with a warm smile on her face. She stopped only inches away from her and Sarah frantically tried to scramble away from her.

"Do not be alarmed of me." The woman spoke as if in an echo.

Sarah stopped in her tracks and looked up at her with wide eyes, her chest heaving up and down with fright.

"Who.. who are you? Please, I have to leave, I have to save Jareth the goblin king! And I.."

But the woman held up a hand to silence her.  
"Do you love the king of the goblins?"

Sarah wasn't sure what to expect from this woman, but her question took her extremely off guard, what did it matter to her?

"Yes, I would give my life for him." Sarah said as she stood up and lifted her chin, all fright disappearing.

"He almost died because of you." The woman continued. "You rejected him more than once, what assurance is there that you won't do it again?"

Sarah shook her head feeling overwhelmingly guilty. "I know it. I know that I've hurt him and I blame myself for it. For a long time I didn't think it possible that he was capable of loving me so I hurt him so he'd leave, but at the same time I didn't want him to leave because I love him; I have always loved him. It's shameful for me to say this even to you who I don't even know, but in a way this whole experience has allowed me to realize that I need to stop being selfish, and I need to stop second guessing others so much, especially with regards to Jareth, but it's too late now isn't it? I can't save him can I?" Sarah pleaded with tears in her eyes.

"He loves you, so much that parting from you almost killed him." The woman continued.

Sarah nodded. "I know that now, and I can't tell you how sorry I am, how I regret my choices with regards to him."

"If he were to live, would you marry him and agree to become his Queen? It is what he desires above all else." The woman asked that caused Sarah to look up in alarm, her emerald eyes wide and red with tears still streaming down. The woman in front of her was still floating there.

"I'm sorry but, who or what are you exactly?" Sarah asked.

"You did not answer my question." She replied a bit more forcefully.

Sarah gave her a small water smile. "Of course I would marry him."

"You give your word on that?" the woman kept insisting. "Even if it means leaving your world for good?"

Sarah sighed. "My world means nothing if Jareth isn't there to share it with."

The floating woman continued to look deeply into Sarah's eyes and apparently she had found what she was looking for since she smiled warmly at her.

"I am the one who guards the labyrinth, nobody but his highness; the king of the goblins has ever seen me before. His power is what keeps me alive; his remaining power summoned me to save you."

Sarah didn't even let her finish for when she said that, Sarah burst out with happiness. "SO HE IS ALIVE!"

"Yes." The woman nodded. "I will take you back to the entrance of the castle, your friends will be there with the ingredient that you so courageously obtained, but you must hurry."

Sarah nodded. "I'm ready to go back now."

The floating woman nodded and slowly opened her arms where there was a blinding white light and then she felt herself falling again. She was falling at a faster rate and then she landed unceremoniously on the ground, exactly where the floating woman had said she would land.

"Sarah!" Came Hoggle's cry. She turned to face him and again, just like the woman had said; he was clutching the nistergia flowers in his hands.

"You're alive fair maiden! We're all alive! But how? How did we get here?" Sir Didymus asked.

She sighed frantically. "I don't really have time to explain right now, we have to hurry before Jareth dies!" She said as she took the flowers from Hoggle's grasp and ran as fast as she could to Jareth's room. The commotion caused the healer to head down the hallway where he met up with the girl who looked a mess and somewhat injured, he would have to examine her after Jareth was taken care of. She quickly handed him of the flowers and he immediately set to work.

After the medicine had been created and given to Jareth only a few minutes later; the healer stood back and looked at the unconscious king.

"We'll have to wait a bit, but he's already looking better." He then smiled at Sarah. "I think it will work, in the meantime, I should examine you." He said as he looked at the dried up blood around her face that was smeared with dirt.

"No, I need to stay here with him." She said as she walked over to Jareth's bedside and pulled up a chair. She carefully pulled back the sheet that was covering him and reached down so that she pulled out his hand. She intertwined his fingers with hers and she could have sworn that she felt one of his fingers push back against her own. Her fingers continued to caress his own and she suddenly leaned carefully towards his face and planted a gentle kiss on his lips. She knew nothing miraculous would happen like having him suddenly wake up, but she felt that he was warm, and she felt a faint spark when her lips touched his. Instead of sitting back down on the chair, she went around and climbed on to his bed where she boldly wrapped her arms around him. She turned him so that he was facing her, his blonde strands slightly covering his eyes. She pulled his strands back and whispered. "I love you Jareth." and kissed him again as she almost immediately fell asleep beside him.


End file.
